The following discussion of the background of the disclosure is merely provided to aid the reader in understanding the disclosure and is not admitted to describe or constitute prior art to the present disclosure.
Cancer of veterinary animals, such as canine cancer, affects one out of every three dogs. Of those, over half of them will die of cancer. Unfortunately, at this time, there is no true cure (100% remission) for most tumors in dogs. For example, brain tumors are generally considered to be malignant due to the delicate and poorly regenerative nature of neurons and restriction of the brain to the finite space of the cranium which does not allow tumor growth devoid of collateral damage to brain parenchyma. Therefore, general long-term prognosis for canine brain tumors is poor. Current treatment of canine tumors revolves around four main modalities: surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, and palliative (pain relieving) care. Depending on the type, extent, and location of the cancer, any one or combination of these techniques may be employed. While these treatments may help to some extent, there is a need in the art for more effective therapies that can be used alone or in combination with traditional therapies for the treatment of veterinary cancer.